Blackpool

Founded in 1887, Blackpool have played their home games at Bloomfield Road since 1901. Their last season in the top flight was 2010/11 though the club has come close to returning since. The biggest honour in the club’s history was the 1953 FA Cup win against Bolton Wanderers, named the Matthews final, which Blackpool won 4-3.

FEATURED

A high court judge has ruled that Owen Oyston and his son Karl, the owners of Blackpool football club, must pay £31m to the minority shareholder Valeri Belokon for his shares after operating an “illegitimate stripping” of the club following promotion to the Premier League in 2010.

The symbolism will hang heavily in the air at Wembley on Sunday afternoon. At one end of the ground, a sea of red and white will offer a perfect demonstration of the positives that can be achieved when supporters have a say in the running of their club. Facing the followers of Exeter City, however, the swaths of empty seats in the Blackpool section will tell a sorry story about what happens when football fans are pushed too far.